Don't Come Back Next Year
by ConfuzzledAtLife
Summary: A teacher says something nasty about Soda, and Sandy takes it to heart. At least, that's what Soda thinks. Oneshot.


**Disclaimer**_**: **_I don't own anything.

**A/N**: Borne on the wings of my supreme hatred of school. Teachers, seriously, _don't _say this to kids. It doesn't make them study.

On the lighter side…

X X X X

That window sure was pretty. Not the window, just the stuff you could see in it. Well, no, it was not pretty at all, was it? Just buildings, smoky grey street. That kind of grey was only pretty on horses. Wow, that'd look majestic, wouldn't it? Great big stallions the colour Darry said made him depressed, galloping off across dew wet green grass…

"_Sodapop_!"

"_What_?" I yelled. I was getting awful sick of this teacher, and unfortunately I think I was the only one. I keep steering conversation that way, trying to find someone – _anyone_ – who didn't like her. Pony thought she was real insightful. Stupid wordy kid… kidding; I loved Pony. Steve was indifferent and Two-Bit thought she was hot. Sandy worshipped the ground that dragon lady walked on, not that I was ever brave enough to ask her to her face. I just watched her face and figured it out. I guess I do way too much of that.

"Everyone else has already finished, and your book is still blank. It's not the first time, either! You're in danger of failing this course, young man, now answer me question number one!"

I glared at her as my eyes slowly moved to the board. _We use apostrophe-S to say an object belongs to someone, eg Sandy's English book is very thorough. What rule is applied when a person's name ends in the letter S?_

What the hell? Applied? You applied glue to wood. Maybe it meant… used? Yes, that would make sense. I hoped I was right… but I still didn't know the rule. Soda Curtis… Soda Curtis's? Soda Curtises? Soda Curti's? "Um," I said.

"You should know this one," she said. Her voice changer suddenly, becoming that soft one that made everyone love her. Never worked on _me_. "Come on, just have a think about it. What comes to mind?"

"Um…" I said again. "Do you put the apostrophe before the S?"

For some reason, she looked confused. I couldn't guess why; she should have known what I was talking about. "Which S? A second S, or the original?"

I couldn't really picture what she was saying, so I made a guess. "The original." Please let me be right. If I was right, it'd change all her opinions about me. I wanted to prove her wrong.

"No, that's not right, Sodapop," she said, and I could just hear her disappointment mingling with annoyance. "Maybe you should listen when I teach, you might pick up more."

I looked down. People were whispering to each other, and some were laughing. As if someone had flicked a switch in my brain, I could hear everything they were saying.

One conversation caught my attention in particular. Evie had leaned over to Sandy and said in a carrying whisper, "_That's_why you shouldn't date, Sandy. Boys are loads immature. I said it before and I'll say it again; he's awful handsome, but not too bright."

I hated Evie. I really did. Normally I was good at tuning everything out, but not now. Right now, I just wanted to scream and throw things at the wall like some baby. If she thought I was immature, I'd show her what immature really meant. "Well if I don't know where some stupid dash goes, ain't that your fault?" I yelled.

The room was suddenly dead silent. I didn't think anyone was expecting that. "I beg your pardon?" the dragon lady said. Her voice was filled with outrage.

"It's your job to teach me, and I don't know!" I cried. "That's _your _fault, not mine! Why don't you look at all their books; I bet you they don't know either!"

"Mr Curtis, if you don't want to come back to school next year, then DON'T COME!" she screamed, and I knew I'd hit a nerve.

I glared at her only a few more seconds before standing and walking straight out the door. I hit all the locker doors with my fist as I passed them, wanting to make as big an impression as I could. Screw her. I was so done with all this shit. It wasn't up to her to say anything about me, and it wasn't up to Evie to decide whether I'm smart or not. I knew she was right. I _wasn't _smart. It was just the first time I actually cared.

Nobody was home when I got there, and I was grateful for that. I sat for a long time on the porch, smoking Pony's cigarettes, wishing I was the type of guy Sandy could love.

Mom came home before anyone else. I was climbing the tree in our front yard by then; that was something me and Pony both do when we're upset. Pony just sits on a branch for an hour or more thinking, but I rather climbing all over. I think Darry thinks it's a bit stupid.

"Sodapop Curtis, you come down right this instance!" screams my mom.

I didn't want to come down. I wanted to stay here, amongst the branches and birds, where I knew it was safe. I didn't want anyone else yelling at me. But it was a double-edged sword, really – I think that's the right simile-metaphor-homophone-thing. She'd yell at me if I stayed and yell at me if I left. So I left.

"Why on earth are you here and not at school?" she asked me as soon as I got down.

She didn't yell at me, but she sounded annoyed enough. Well, she was annoyed already. What did I have to lose? "Because I don't belong there."

She blinked. "Oh. Well, if that's what you think, then _I _think you and me need to take a little walk inside and discuss your attitude. You need to go to school, Sodapop."

I looked away. I didn't want to tell her, but I was hurt by what she said. She sounded like a teacher. "I don't belong there. My teacher told me to drop out today."

Well, she sure wasn't expecting _that _one. "Who?"

"Doesn't matter, she's right," I mumbled, keeping my voice purposefully low.

"Pardon?" Mom asked. She changed her demeanour. "Please tell me what's wrong, Soda."

"She said not to come back next year. Then Evie said something to Sandy, and she hates me now."

Mom sighed. "So that's your problem. Sandy."

"Mom…"

"Am I right?"

Maybe she was right. I really couldn't care less what some teacher thought of me. But I really cared about what Evie said to Sandy, because I couldn't have imagined anything worse than Sandy not liking me. "Now she thinks I'm stupid."

"Did she say that?"

What was this, the Spanish Inquisition? "No."

"Soda, a lot of things attracted me to your father, and none of it was his grades. Grades are nothing more than a nice addition. I didn't even know how well he did in school until after we left, and we'd been going out a long time when that happened."

I sat down heavily in the grass at the base of the tree, and my mom joined me. "But Evie noticed, so how can you say Sandy won't?"

Mom smiled now, a bit of a cheeky smile I usually saw on Dad. "Because Evie doesn't like you that way."

Now I really smiled like I meant it. And if Sandy liked me, I should ask her. If she didn't… well, I knew I wouldn't be in school long anyway. The teacher had been right about one thing; I was going to drop out. So what did I have to lose?

X X X X

**A/N**: I love reviews! Particularly looking for reviews about the tense. I'm practising writing 1st person POV, and sometimes I mess up the tense. Any pointers please?


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